In All Fidelity
by RevengefulAddict
Summary: It was all a dumb English project. He had a week left to complete it. But someone was learning more about Naruto than he knew about himself. Maybe someone did understand him after all... Shounen-ai, pairing: to be determined, AU, Language
1. The Assignment

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the other characters. If I did, there would be a lot of happy fangirls. XD

* * *

**Chapter 1: **The Assignment

-xxx-

Naruto threw his pencil down in frustration. He crumpled up the over-erased sheet of lined paper and leaned back in his chair to throw the umpteenth piece of paper into the trash. A pile was beginning to form around the waste bin where he had missed.

"Stupid Iruka-sensei…" he muttered then sighed, taking out a new sheet of paper and tapping his pencil against the table in deep thought.

* * *

"Now for your next assignment, I'm going to put you into groups of three. You are going to evaluate your partners, not just in class, but in their every day life." The young teacher announced.

"Isn't that called stalking?" A smart mouthed brunette questioned his sensei's judgment with a smirked.

"I highly doubt your partners would appreciate you stalking them, Inuzaka-san." Iruka sighed with a little frustration. "Obviously you won't be following them around every minute of every day, but pay closer attention to them than you normally would."

"So we're not going to be partnered with people we're familiar with then?" a pretty pink haired female questioned the teacher more politely.

"Exactly. I put you all specifically in these groups based on your personalities and your familiarity with each other." The scarred teacher smiled at his student's intelligence. "Now, I will announce your groups. First group: Inuzaka Kiba, Aburame Shino and Hyuuga Hinata."

"I'm stuck with bug guy?!"

"Kiba-san!" Iruka warned the dog-faced student sternly.

"Heheh, sucks to be you." Naruto laughed out at his friend teasingly.

"Hmph. At least Hinata isn't freaky too." Kiba shrugged, Hinata blushed.

"Next group: Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino, and Akimichi Chouji" Iruka announced

"Huugh?" a brown haired student drowsily joined the conversation "did someone say my name?"

"Yeah you lazy ass, you're in my group!" Ino shrieked. "Honestly, can't I get someone more interesting in my group? Like Sasuke-kun?!" she blushed toward the stoic Uchiha, who paid absolutely no attention to the blonde.

"Group? Group for what?" The Nara teen asked his new partner.

"Ugh, honestly!" Ino cried out again.

"Guys! Settle down! All groups are final!" Iruka rubbed his temples in frustration. He loved kids, he really did, but there were times he wished it was legal to duct-tape their mouths shut, bind them to their chairs and instill a little fear into them so they would just be quiet for once.

He had gotten to the last group when he was interrupted with a typical Naruto outburst. "IRUKA SENSEI!"

"…yes Naruto?"

"Only me, Sakura and Sasuke are left!"

"Way to go, captain obvious." Kiba snickered.

"Shut up!" he snapped at the dog boy then turned back to the teacher, "There's must be a mistake! There's no way I'm working with Sasuke!" the blonde pointed at the raven-haired Uchiha, who now looked a little annoyed himself.

Sakura sighed, "Naruto, just be quiet! He already told us our partners were final!"

"You only say that because you want to work with Sasuke-kun." Ino glared at her former friend.

"Whatever. You're just jealous that you don't get to, Ino-pig." Sakura smirked, rubbing the fact that _she _had the object of both girls' fancy in her group, and topping the cake by calling her old friend by her most dreaded nickname.

"What did you just say?!"

"Are you deaf?"

"That's it!"

"Iruka-sensei, I'm NOT working with Sasuke!" Naruto proclaimed

"Well if he doesn't have to work with Sasuke, I shouldn't have to work with Shino!" Kiba added

"Ino-Pig!"

"Bilboard Brow!"

"Ino-Pig!"

"EVERYBODY QUIET. NOW!" Everyone was startled as Iruka slammed his book down on the desk with a loud "thwack!" Nobody dared move, "These are the partners you will be observing and I will NOT be changing ANYONE. Now if you'd be so kind as to let me finish the explanation, I might be able to let you out to lunch early."

That got everyone's attention.

"For this assignment, you already know you will be observing your partners. You will then decide on something that symbolizes that person to you. For example, I might symbolize Inuzaka-san with hm…a rooster. Then I will go on to write a two paged paper, double spaced, about why I chose this for him."

"A rooster? Why a rooster?"

"You're loud and boisterous, like a rooster." Iruka smirked at the teen, who seemed to be processing this all very slowly. "The whole point of this is to see your partners in a new light. You'll be looking at their personality, not their appearance or their likes/dislikes. Anything obvious, such as Naruto being symbolized as a clown will result in an automatic failure."

"Hey!" Naruto crossed his arms.

"When is it due?" a much more calm Sakura asked.

"Two weeks from now. I want you to have plenty of opportunities to really observe your partners and try to get past the obvious. Sometimes people hide their feelings and put on a front for everyone. If you don't take time to look for it, you don't notice it." Iruka began to pass out papers as a reminder of the instructions for the project. "You will be presenting these in front of the class on the 17th. Oh, and one more thing!"

"What now?" Kiba whined like a depressed puppy.

"This is optional, but you may evaluate one more person, anybody else you want to, for extra credit. It doesn't have to be a classmate; it could be family, a close friend or your favorite English teacher." Iruka announced with a cheesy smile

"This is totally unbelievable…" Naruto muttered as he received a paper for himself, dismissing the idea of extra credit.

The bell rang.

"Don't leave until you get a paper!" Iruka shouted over the excited chatter and rustle of backpacks and feet. "and think about doing the extra credit!"

"So, Sasuke-kun, since we're in the same group, do you want to eat lunch together so we can get to know each other more?" Sakura asked the stoic ucuhiha sweetly before packing up.

"No." he stated bluntly before throwing his bag over his shoulders and walking away.

"Buurrrn…" Ino whispered in her ear as she walked past Sakura.

"Hmph." Sakura brushed off the insult. It was only every day the two females verbally beat each other up anyways.

"So Sakura-Chan!" Naruto approached the pink haired female, completely oblivious of what had just happened, "Y'know, I was thinking, well, since we're gonna be partners and all—"

"No way." She huffed and walked away from the blonde in a hurry.

"Ouch." Kiba laughed, stuffing the paper in his bag, which was more of a black hole of miscellaneous papers. "Come on, Chouji's probably waiting for us."

"Yeah, yeah." Naruto tossed his bag over his shoulder to walk out the English 11 class and get to lunch.

* * *

The library was lit in a soft orange glow with the light of the setting sun filtering through the windows. Rubbing his forehead in thought, Naruto finally threw his pencil down again.

_Stupid, stupid Iruka. I can't think of anything! Oh well, I still have a week. But I have to work all next week and I got stuck with closing. _ Naruto sighed. He had barely made any headway on the "stupid project" that "Stupid Iruka-sensei" had assigned.

Deciding to call it quits, the blonde zipped up his backpack and swung it onto his back, walking out of the library. His stomach growled as he walked past his favorite restaurant, Ichiraku Ramen, the aroma of chicken, pork and of course, ramen reaching his nose and empty stomach.

Pulling out his frog wallet, he shrugged, deciding it wouldn't hurt his finances too badly to buy a meal out. Besides, being an employee and a loyal customer, the old man nearly gave him ramen for free. And of course, being a regular, the chef knew exactly what to get the blonde as soon as he entered.

After one last gulp, Naruto set down the bowl with a loud clank and a satisfied "ahhh!"

"Remember you're working next week, right Naruto-kun?"

"Hai!" The blonde paid for his meal and stood up. "Ja ne!"

He walked out of the small ramen shop onto the dark streets. The moon was just bright enough to light his path, but it also darkened the long, dark shadow behind him.

"_And don't forget to consider the extra-credit! You can evaluate anyone close to you!" _the voice of Iruka-sensei played over in Naruto's head as his goofy, carefree façade finally faded off his face for the day.

"But I don't have anyone close to me…" he muttered to himself quietly as he rounded a corner on the way to his apartment. Being 17 he was already on his own, fending for himself. His parents, having died in a car crash while he was only 3 had left him in a shelter to grow up with lonely, orphaned kids like himself.

By the time he was 15, he was given permission to live by himself with frequent check ups by KCPS and another adult. Though Naruto didn't admit it, and no one else knew, Iruka-sensei had been the one to volunteer to monitor the blonde's living arrangements and make sure he had enough to survive. Though many took him for a lazy, reckless kid, Naruto had proven to Iruka that he was quite responsible and capable when it mattered.

But aside from his English teacher, no one else saw this side, and Naruto wouldn't permit anyone to. He had never told anyone about his life in the shelter or how it felt to have nobody to go home to. There had been times when Kiba would complain about his mom being scary when she's mad and how she would ground him and stick him with all sorts of horrible chores—from cooking to cleaning. _"Oh poor Kiba. It must be so _horrible_ having parents that care about you." _Naruto often felt like telling his dog-fanatic friend, but withheld. He didn't want anyone's pity. He just wanted someone to understand, and he knew everyone—Kiba, Shikamaru, Chouji, Lee— just wasn't capable of doing so.

Sticking the keys in his door, he pushed the cheap thing open, with doorframe creaking in its lonely, crotchety "welcome home". As he disappeared behind into the dark apartment, he locked the door to undetected familiar eyes that had been watching from the street below.

* * *

AN: As if that wasn't cheesy or anything…Anyways! I'm a little new to the Naruto section of , so I mind as well introduce myself. I'm RevengefulAddict, also known as Lightingstar-Icy, or just plain Icy.

I was a kinda inspired by Godofcontradiction's story, "This Way to the Stars" (very very good, by the way). I liked the whole AU, school theme and especially how he/she portrays Naruto as someone who is cheery for everyone, but uses that to hide the pain inside.

The whole assignment thing, however, was pretty random. I can't quite remember where it came from, it just popped in my head. I apologize that this chapter is quite short—it's about half of what I usually write for a chapter, but for an introduction, I felt it was appropriate to do it this way.

But anyways, I'll stop rambling and ask you kindly for your reviews n.n


	2. Unpredictable

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the other characters. If I did, there would be a lot of happy fangirls. XD

**Chapter 2: **Unpredictable

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"Aniki! I'm home!" a thin framed Uchiha announced, walking into his simple two story house. He had heard the rumors; some gossiping students of his school had claimed that Sasuke lived in a huge mansion on the other side of town, while others swore that he changed houses every day.

Sasuke simply shook his head at these rumors. No one knew him or his brother. All they knew was that the two were orphaned after his parents died in a plane crash. They knew that they were also the heirs of the Uchiha Industries Company and their parents multi-million dollar will. They all had heard of the long and highly publicized incident when their uncle, Uchiha Madara, tried to create a fraudulent will to take all the money for himself, and when that failed, argued with the judge that the two were too young to handle such money.

Uchiha Itachi, Sasuke's older brother, had proved to be quite the negotiator at only 17 years old and convinced Madara to give up the case with the terms that Itachi and Sasuke would take the money, while Madara could take over the company. This seemed to satisfy the man, and the case was closed. It had been four years since then, yet everyone still remembered it.

But the cold and aloof younger Uchiha had no desire to set his classmates straight on his real life. After all, if it hadn't been for his name and family history, no one would have cared to find out who he was. If he had been the most hideous kid in school, none of his fangirls would even bother looking at him. They only wanted to know him because of his money and his looks, and for that, he turned them all away.

"Otouto, you're later than normal." Itachi raised a slender brow at his younger brother as he leaned on the kitchen door-frame, eating a slice of pizza over a paper plate.

"Hn, you're just home early." Sasuke responded a bit coldly, but Itachi didn't mind. That was just how Sasuke was, and he was quite used to it.

"Hai. I turned in my report today, so I don't have any homework I need to slave over. I brought home a pizza if you want any." He bit into the cheese covered Italian sensation.

"Thanks." Sasuke nodded before heading up to his room. Itachi smirked at his brother's complete predictability and went back into the kitchen while his otouto climbed up the stairs tiredly.

His backpack hit the floor with a thud and Sasuke sighed. He sat down on his bed, thinking about the blonde that he had been watching. It was as if he had seen a completely different Uzumaki Naruto, and to be honest, it slightly baffled him.

"_Sometimes people hide their feelings and put on a front for everyone. If you don't take time to look for it, you don't notice it"_

At first Sasuke had felt like Iruka had been talking about him, but now he knew the English teacher had meant Naruto. He had often seen the two talking and noticed how Iruka had given the blonde idiot a break more often than other teachers.

_I guess I'll go talk to Iruka-sensei…Maybe he can help. _Sasuke thought to himself before walking back out his room to where dinner awaited.

"How was school today?" Itachi asked, now watching his little brother eat.

"Fine. You?"

"Like I said, I turned in that god-forsaken report today, so I can finally spend some time with my Otouto." Itachi smiled, and Sasuke smiled back. It was a rare sight, and hardly anyone ever saw them smile, except each other. As cold as he was, Sasuke held a warm spot for his big brother. After all, Itachi was all he had, he had taken care of Sasuke when their parents died, and he was the only one who saw Sasuke for who he really was. "If you don't have any homework, maybe tomorrow night we can go see a movie."

Sasuke sighed, making up an excuse as to why he couldn't, "Unfortunately I have to write a report. Two, actually." It wasn't that he didn't want to spend time with his brother, it was just that any place where teenagers his age gathered was a place he wanted to avoid at all costs.

"Oh? What about?"

"Our English teacher put us into groups of three. We have to observe our partners more closely than we usually do, then write a report, creating a symbol for them and explain why we chose that symbol."

"Ah, a lesson in symbolism."

"And torture." Sasuke muttered.

"Aw, it can't be _that _bad."

Sasuke simply glared at his older brother.

"_That_ bad, huh?" Itachi leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms, "Who are your partners?"

"Uzumaki Naruto and Haruno Sakura. Both are annoying, but at least I've made some interesting discoveries about Naruto." He explained before biting into his pizza.

"I remember Sakura…didn't she come over one valentines day to give you chocolate? She was the pink haired one, right?"

"Unfortunately."

"And you put in these groups by your teacher."

"Again, unfortunately."

Itachi laughed, "Otouto, you're going to have to learn to look on the bright side of life sometime, you know."

"I suppose. I could have gotten Yamanaka stuck in my group, or that idiot dog kid." Sasuke shrugged.

"What do you think you're going to chose for your symbols?"

"I'm not sure, I haven't really gotten to know either much yet." Sasuke got up from his chair to throw away his plate.

"Why don't you invite them over?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at his brother. "What's with you? You're awfully talkative. And invite someone over? You're kidding me, right?"

"You don't know until you try."

"I think that philosophy class has gotten to your head, Aniki." Sasuke shook his head as he walked out of the kitchen.

Itachi simply smiled. "So we'll be seeing that movie tomorrow then." Sasuke sighed aloud, and Itachi laughed.

* * *

"Alright ladies, since Gai-sensei is going to be in Suna for a week, I've teamed up the boys and girls classes to teach you all a new form of exercise that requires more grace and poise. It's called _dancing_." A shapely, brunette, physical education teacher announced to her students.

"And I don't mean that poor excuse for dancing you all do at your proms and formals and what not. We're talking REAL dancing. Today and all next week we'll be going over different types of dancing like the waltz, the tango, two-step, line dancing, and if we have time, we might get to the cha-cha as well."

While the girls in the class had no qualms about this, almost every male in the class whined inwardly and outwardly as well.

"I will be picking your partner, and for times sake, they will be your partner for the rest of the week."

"But Kurenai-Sensei…" one student raised his hand, "There are more guys than girls."

"Then we'll just have to pair up guys with guys." She stated simply, ignoring the looks of disgust on some of the guys faces and giggles from the girls. "Alright everyone, line up!"

The girls, all trying to position themselves so they'd be paired with Sasuke, gathered in a frolicking poor excuse for a line.

"LADIES! If you want everyone to have to run 3 laps around the track, I suggest you learn what a line looks like and make one!"

When the mass confusion died down and the more "delicate" gender was able to position themselves into a real line, Kurenai-sensei began to pair off boys with girls. Somewhere during the confusion and while their teacher wasn't looking, Sasuke was able to slip out from the middle of the line to the back, much to the dismay of his many fangirls.

"Alright, so we've got you five left…" she muttered, looking at the remainder of the male line, "Tenzou with Kaiten, Uchiha with Uzumaki and Kosha, you'll be my partner."

Naruto glared at his teacher, then Sasuke. "Why couldn't you just stay put up there?" he growled in irritation at his new partner.

"Alright everyone, first we're going to learn the proper stance for a waltz. Guys place your hand on your partner's waist—no, not so low Taiwa! Yes, There. Then take their hand."

Sasuke placed his hand on Naruto's waist. "Oh hell no." Naruto swatted his hand away, "I am NOT going to be the girl in this."

"Fine." He replied simply, letting Naruto guide.

After Kurenai finished her demonstration of how to waltz, music began to play. "That's your que to the dance, dobe." Sasuke huffed.

"Hmph!" Naruto jerked them sideways in a less than graceful manner. Thirty seconds into the dance and Naruto had already trampled all over his partner's feet.

"Gah, just let me lead." Sasuke demanded.

"Fine…" Naruto muttered, accepting defeat to their pointless battle.

The rest of the song went smoothly, save for the couple of glares from fangirls and snickers from the other guys. The blonde felt his face flush red from embarrassment when he noticed their teacher staring at the two of them with a smirk. _Great, everyone is out to embarrass me, even my teachers!_

"Have you done your papers yet?" Sasuke finally spoke

"Huh? Oh, no…I don't know what to write for either of you…" Naruto looked down at his feet, pretending to concentrate on their movements. "You?" _Of course, he probably already has his done._

"Me either."

Naruto was surprised, "Surely I'm not that hard to categorize. Just call me a llama or something goofy like that."

"Iruka-sensei said that'd result in an automatic failure, or were you not listening, dobe?"

"Hey! And stop calling me that!" Naruto growled.

"Hn. Maybe I should use that as your symbol." Sasuke smirked.

"Why you!—"

"Uchiha, Uzumaki!" Kurenai beckoned the two as she turned off the music. "You two…" she began as the class watched while the two made their way toward her, "were better than any group I saw. Everyone, watch and learn!"

"A- a- ano, Kurenai-sensei!" Naruto protested, but the music was turned back on nonetheless.

"aaand 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3…good, good!" she clapped as the two as they moved across the floor.

Sakura, who had been the object of Naruto's affection since 5th grade, glared at him. Ino, whom he couldn't stand anyway, glared at him as well. In fact, almost every girl in the class was glaring. The embarrassment only rose as Kiba and a few other guys made kissy faces and wolf whistles.

Naruto's face grew brighter and brighter, while Sasuke seemed to remain completely calm. _How can he stay so unaffected by this? Isn't he embarrassed at all?_ He felt Sasuke grip his hand a little bit, but in a comforting matter. As soon as he began to focus on the rhythm and their movements, everyone else seemed to matter less; Kurenai instructed everyone to begin practicing again, the blonde was finally back to normal.

"How could you stay so calm?" He asked.

"It's only an assignment, nothing to be embarrassed over, dobe."

"yeah…gah! But everyone was staring, and you heard the guys…well I guess you weren't receiving all the glares from the girls though…"

"That's what you and everyone else have in common. You care too much what other people think about you, and you put up this façade so you can be just like them." The raven haired Uchiha stated simply, then leaned over to whisper in the other's ear, "but if you stop caring, you see a whole 'nother side to life."

The ever so light scent of his cologne _reminds me of soft pillows on a sunny Saturday morning…_ The feel of his breath on his ear _like a warm breeze in the field, tickling my skin…_ And the tug in the pit of his stomach _my heart beat so hard it sunk to my stomach._

It was only a second, a confused gaze from sparkling oceanic eyes to a mysterious hole of dark yet warm charcoal orbs, yet it lasted in what seemed like an hour. Then Naruto blushed deeply, looking down at their feet again

"Teme…don't confuse me!"

Sasuke smiled. _And there it was. That feeling again. The feeling that my insides were being yanked downward, and a choking feeling in my throat. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't think. I couldn't do anything else but…smile back? It was beautiful…no! It wasn't anything queer like that…it was like seeing a shooting star. It was…mesmerizing. I know it sounds gay, but it was _amazing. Naruto tried to reason it all out but only found himself more confused.

Class ended with the blonde finally able to get some space away from his ever so strange partner. The boys headed back to the locker room, yet once inside, Naruto was endlessly tortured by Kiba, who found the whole class just too funny to not joke about.

"Honestly, will you just shut up?" Naruto finally slammed the locker door shut, glaring at his best friend, "It's not my fault I got partnered with him. Blame his stupid fan girls!".

"Woah, no need to get angry!" Kiba raised his hands defensively.

Naruto sighed, catching from the corner of his eye the sight of Sasuke's regular shirt sliding down his spine. "It was just…embarrassing, okay?" he said in a considerably quieted voice.

Kiba knew his friend, and this was a sign to back off. He nodded, quickly changing the subject. "Hey, you wanna hang out tonight? Shika and Chouji and I were thinking we could go see a movie."

"Which one, what time?" Naruto leaned on his locker

"Devi's Prison, 5:25?"

"Sounds good, I've been wanting to see that."

The bell rang

"Argh, I gotta run so I can copy the homework from Shikamaru!" Kiba said, lifting his bag over his back. "See ya later!"

"See ya" Naruto waved then went back to closing up his bag. His next class was a study period, so he had no need to rush. Just as he went to stand up, he felt a hand lightly brush his arm in passing, yet in an obvious, deliberate movement. Turning to see who it was, he only caught a glimpse of spiky black hair before it disappeared out the door.

Naruto ran a hand through his messy blonde hair, frowning in thought. Something more than a simple dance lesson had transpired back there, or at least it seemed. Shaking his head, he tried to think of something else as he walked out of the locker room.

* * *

"You didn't."

"I did."

"How could you?!"

"You could at least say thanks?" Itachi stood, waving two movie tickets in his hand. "Honestly, you need to get out more."

"Thanks but no thanks. I don't want to get out more than I have to. Can't we see a movie here?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Because I said so."

And thus the war began. Sasuke glared. Itachi raised an eyebrow, hands on his hips. Sasuke pouted. Itachi sighed.

"God damnit, Sasuke! What are you so afraid of? It's not like I'm making you go in a pink tutu. And it's just going to be you and me."

"And probably everyone else that goes to my school." Sasuke added.

Itachi grunted in annoyance. Honestly, his little brother was so unreasonable sometimes, "I offered to let you be home schooled way back when. You remember that?"

"Yes."

"And you didn't want to. You wanted to go to a public school."

"I wanted to find someone like me, but obviously that was wishful thinking and a mistake on my part." Sasuke huffed. "The only one like me is you…" he trailed off, flashes of memories of the blonde idiot making plans with his friends to see the same movie at the same time. A small smirk curved the corners of his lips, "alright, fine. But I want my own popcorn!" he gave in, running upstairs to get ready.

Itachi watched his baby brother with a confused grin. _What the hell was that all about, Otouto?_

The theater wasn't completely packed, but it was enough to make Sasuke's skin crawl. He didn't like large, crowded places—especially large crowded places in which his feet stuck to the floor.

He watched as Itachi played with is phone before the previews began. Sasuke had decided the moment that Iruka offered extra credit that his third person would be Itachi. Even though he had known the man all his life, Sasuke was still just as at a loss of how to symbolize his brother accurately.

_Like an owl—Strong, keen and observant. But no, he's more graceful than that too. And more mysterious. Like a panther? No, he's also wise and cunning—sharp as a tack, too. _ Sasuke made note of his appearance, his masculine yet delicate features framed gently by dark, raven black hair…_ Yes…that's it. A raven. Perfect._

Sasuke smirked inwardly. At least if his paper on Sakura ended up being a flunk, he could totally make it up with the extra credit. Now he just needed to tackle one for Naruto.

"Hey, no fair! You guys get the good seats!"

The younger Uchiha woke out of his trance to look over at the people coming to sit down in his row. It was a small group, he could tell, but he didn't realize _which_ group this was until a certain blonde haired dobe sat down next to him—completely oblivious to the fact that he was popping Sasuke's personal space bubble.

Sasuke let out a long sigh. A big, long, irritated sigh. Itachi looked up to see his brother intensely brooding. "What's wrong?"

Naruto finally looked over to see who he had just sat himself next to, "Sasuke?"

"So you finally noticed, dobe." Sasuke glared.

"Now Sasuke-kun, that's not how you should talk to your friends." Itachi chided slightly.

"Uh?" Naruto looked at the man next to his apparent "friend".

"Naruto, this is my brother Itachi. Itachi, this is Uzumaki Naruto, a _classmate_ of mine" he introduced the two, glaring at Itachi on the word "classmate".

"aah, nice to meet you, Uzumaki-san" Itachi reached over and shook the blonde's hand.

"Heheh, you're not at all like Sasuke." Naruto grinned, and Sasuke had the biggest urge to wipe that smile off his face.

"Well, I wouldn't say that. A lot of people say we're quite the same, actually." Itachi smirked.

Sasuke felt like he had shrunken 5 times his size. Itachi knew everything about him—_Okay, almost everything—_And he was in the perfect position to spill it all out to the one person Sasuke wanted to hide it all from…and reveal it all too? _God, what is with me? _

"Oi, Teme. You alright there? You look like you're going to puke." Naruto warned concernedly.

Sasuke simply sighed and closed his eyes. "I'm fine. Long day."

Suddenly the lights began to dim as the previews began to play. _About freakin' time! _

"Chyeah. You're telling me." Naruto sat back, knowing all too well what his "friend" meant.

* * *

A.N.: Alright, I think I decided on the pairing here. Or have I? Sasuke seems to be quite interested in Naruto, yet he _is_ pretty close to Itachi. And no. I'm not above writing an uchihacest (I've actually wanted to write one for a while...ehehe...). Which would y'all rather me do? Review and let me know!


	3. Not So Different After All

**Chapter 3:** Not So Different After All

-xxx-

Naruto squirmed in his seat, eyeing sasuke's popcorn. Prices were outrageous and Naruto didn't have the kind of budget to be able to buy needless expenses so freely. But like a little kid, he had a hard time ignoring the buttery, crunchy goodness.

It had only been five minutes into the movie when Sasuke noticed Naruto eyeing his popcorn. Rolling his eyes, he held the bucket toward Naruto as if to say, "Want some?" Naruto smiled, eagerly taking a small handful.

The movie continued, Itachi realizing the second reason why Sasuke was so reluctant to see this particular movie. He should have known. For a guy, his little brother was quite jumpy, and the movie had him on his last nerve.

At one point during the movie, Sasuke had been reaching into the bucket at the same time as Naruto, just as a bloodied corpse jumped out at the main protagonist. Sasuke nearly leapt out of his seat, grabbing Naruto's hand as a natural reaction. Naruto was more surprised at his friend's movements than the movie itself. The blonde blushed, not sure whether to peel Sasuke's hand off his own or to simply let his friend use his hand to brace himself. Thankfully the raven haired teen realized what he was doing and quickly let go of Naruto. For being so embarrassed, the younger Uchiha did a great job of brushing off the incident like nothing had happened.

The ending came with a sappy reunion between the protagonist and his damsel in distress. The popcorn had been reduced to all but a few kernels. Naruto's hand searched idly in the bucket for a few last pieces, as Sasuke's obliviously went after. The hero and his girl kissed. Two hands brushed gently against each other, fingers almost weaving together in a shy dance.

Heart.

Pounding.

Beating.

Unity.

Together.

_Love?_

The credits began to roll and the two pulled their hands away quickly, once again, as if nothing ever happened. Itachi stood up, not unaware of what had just transpired. He had watched as Sasuke's cold, stern face softened into a small smile and warm blush.

Sasuke stood up after, head down, hiding his face from the world and especially Naruto. Itachi smiled as he watched the two from the end of the row, their expressions nearly identical.

The brothers finally made their way out of the theater and into Itachi's car silently. Sasuke watched subconsciously as Naruto waved goodbye to his friends then began to walk along the concrete sidewalk _alone._ The blonde dug his hands in his pocket, focusing on his feet meandering underneath him. He wore the kind of expression Sasuke saw once before, the kind that says, _why do I even keep walking?_

"Let's invite him over for dinner" Itachi broke the silence with a grin.

"Eh?" Sasuke jumped

The older Uchiha laughed, "Foolish Otouto. You're so easy to read."

"Whatever." Sasuke crossed his arms as Itachi drove up along the sidewalk. It took Sasuke rolling down his window and shouting the blonde's most hated nick-name to get Naruto to wake from his trance.

"Um…do you want to come over for dinner?" Sasuke asked, not daring to look at his friend in the eyes.

"Uh, oh…umm…okay…" Naruto laughed nervously, "when?"

"Baka." Sasuke regained his normal attitude, "tonight, obviously."

"Hey! And… I guess, as long as it's okay with your parents and all.." Naruto trailed off.

Sasuke was shocked. Didn't Naruto know…?

"I'm sure it's fine with them." Itachi smirked, "Mom loved having company over. Hop in!"

Missing the past tense verb _loved_, Naruto did as instructed and got into Itachi's fancy car. The smooth leather seats and smell of new car made Naruto feel a little small and unworthy to be riding in such a luxury. The silence was fast becoming awkward, so the older Uchiha made it a point to do something about it.

"Say, if either of you two have any of the same homework, maybe you two could work on it together after dinner."

"Aniki…" Sasuke asked with uncertainty, "what _are_ we having for dinner anyways?"

"Well, Naruto-kun, what would you like?"

"Um…anything is fine with me."

"Ah, I'm afraid we're all out of 'anythings'." Itachi smirked.

"Baka…" Sasuke shook his head at his brother's corny joke, "He likes ramen."

Naruto blushed, _how did he know that?_ "Yeah, I do."

"Know any good places?"

"Ichiraku's is pretty good." Naruto suggested, his blue eyes shining brightly like a delighted child. Within minutes from arriving at the small restaurant, Itachi was carrying out three take-out bags for each of them.

On the way back to the Uchiha residence, Itachi worked to get the two talking, especially Naruto.

"Yeah, Iruka-sensei gave us this stupid assignment on symbolism."

"So Sasuke told me." Itachi nodded as Sasuke listened, "I think it's a brilliant assignment. It forces you all to get to know each other more."

"Yeah, but it's as hard as hell. I don't know how to symbolize you guys, Sasuke." He directed his attention to his English partner, "You're just you, and Sakura-Chan is Sakura-Chan. You guys aren't plants or animals or any abstract thing. You two are too complex for that."

Itachi smiled as he continued driving. Sasuke so owed him for this; surely his little brother was getting ideas for his paper as they spoke. Or at least Itachi thought. In reality, the more Naruto spoke, the more Sasuke had to agree with the blonde. People were too complex to symbolize, _especially _Naruto himself.

"Oi, Sasuke! Have you done your extra credit part yet?"

"Not yet. I know what I'm doing for that though." Sasuke simply grinned. At least he had one person down pat.

"Extra credit, Otouto?"

"Yeah, we can evaluate a third person of our choice." Naruto explained, "You're lucky, Sasuke. I don't know who else to evaluate."

"Do you have someone close to you?" Itachi suggested.

"H-hai…I guess…" Naruto looked down. The conversation was fast going in directions Naruto didn't want to go. Thankfully the car pulled into the driveway of a simple two story house.

As the blonde got out, he gawked a bit at the small, simplicity of it. _He lives here? I was expecting something ten times bigger!_

"Oi, dobe! Are you going to stare at the house all day or come in? The food's getting cold."

"Teme." Naruto muttered then ran up the walkway to the door Sasuke held open for him.

* * *

To say that dinner had been slightly awkward would have been an understatement. For one, no one knew what to say. Instead of gulping down his food quickly as he normally would, Naruto poked at the noodles with his chopsticks, still thinking about what happened at the theater. Sasuke did the same, though neither realized the other's similar behavior.

Itachi smirked, having been the one to finish first, and excused himself to go take a shower and head to bed. So that left two nervous teens sitting at the same table with nothing to talk about: the perfect potion for disaster. Finally, Naruto spoke up.

"Why do you tell me to do something when you can't even do it yourself?" Naruto looked down at his ramen bowl.

"What are you talking about?" Sasuke snapped.

"Today, you told me I care too much about what other people think. But I think that's more your problem and not mine." The blonde looked up, "I just don't understand you. It's like there are times when I'm seeing a whole different side of you, but just when I get close to you, you close right back up."

"You think too much." Was Sasuke's simple reply, and he went back to eating.

"Really? Everyone always tells me I don't think enough." Naruto snorted slightly amused. "So what are you hiding under your Mr. tough guy mask?" he tipped his head to the side.

"I suppose I should ask you the same thing." Sasuke looked up and glared, their eyes meeting for the first time since gym class.

"Stop avoiding the question and answer me." Naruto slammed his fist on the table,

"What if I don't want to?" Sasuke snapped back

"I just don't get you, you know?! And it bugs me. It bugs the livin' shit out of me, to be quite honest."

"Why does it matter to you?"

"Hell if I know!" Naruto stood up from his spot at the table and turned. "Tell your brother I said thanks for the dinner." He said in a lowered voice before walking out the kitchen toward the front door. Unfortunately he went the wrong way.

"Other way, dobe." Sasuke sighed, watching Naruto enter back through the kitchen and exit through the opposing doorway wordlessly. Sasuke heard the front door slam then sighed.

After a moment of thought, he stood up and ran to the door, grabbing his coat and rushing outside. At least he could say he was sorry and walk him home so he didn't have to be alone.

Outside, Naruto paused and turned to the sound of fast approaching footsteps. "What do you want?"

"I want to talk to you."

"Yeah? Well I don't." Naruto turned back and kept walking.

"We're the same, Naruto." Sasuke kept talking as he now walked alongside the blonde.

"How so? You're a rich kid that everyone respects and all the girls oogle over. I'm a dirt poor, class clown that everyone looks down on. I don't think we're very similar at all."

"You're alone."

"Gee, thanks for rubbing it in—and what do you know?"

"I saw you walking home the other day, and I saw a different Naruto. And now that I know to look for it, I see it, but only when everyone else is gone."

The blonde teen stopped, curling his fingers in tightly, knuckles turning white, and then turned suddenly to the Uchiha, "What do you know about being alone? Everyone loves you, you have a family. The only reason you're alone is because you chose to be that way. Me? I have no family, people don't respect me, but I don't let that get in the way! I have friends, and someday, everyone will respect me! So go find some other lost cause because I don't need your pity!" Naruto snapped, eyebrows pointed inward, eyes full of fire and anger.

"I'm not trying to pity you. And maybe I chose to be alone, or maybe I don't. When everyone only pays attention to you because of your looks or wealth, they don't even bother to see the person inside you. Would you really want people like that to be your friends? That's why I chose to push them away, and that's why I was alone because there was no one who understands what I've been through." Sasuke explained calmly, " and just so you know, my parents are dead."

Naruto loosened his fists and let his shoulders slump, "Then why are you telling me this?" He asked. The night had seemed to single them out of the world, with one small lamp post hanging overhead, the two of them standing in its light.

Sasuke looked up at the various bugs circling around the light, "Because when you find someone like you, you naturally go toward them, don't you?"

Naruto raised his eyebrows a little in surprise, "I…guess…"

"Perhaps I've just been so used to pushing everyone away, I don't know what to do when I want to be closer to someone." He finally looked at the stunned Naruto. "Do you get it now?"

"Yeah, actually…" Naruto smiled, "Why didn't you say that earlier?"

"I would have, had you not stormed out of my house." Sasuke turned and began to walk the opposite direction, "Oh, and by the way, you left your jacket at my house."

Naruto smirked, "well I suppose I should go back and get it, hm?"

"That's one of the few bright ideas you've had in a while, Uzumaki."

Instead of feeling put out, the blonde grinned wider, running to catch up with Sasuke, "Oh shut up, teme."

Sasuke turned and smirked, "Make me.", then took off running towards his house. Naruto laughed, chasing after the raven haired teen down the street.

And up on the top floor of the Uchiha household, the blinds in a window closed shut, a satisfied smile hiding behind them.

* * *

Something creaked. A light poured into the dark room, a tall silhouette standing in the open doorway.

"Hn…tousan?" she rubbed her eyes groggily as the figure walked over to her bed. The shadow stopped beside it, then quickly yanked the sheets off, exposing a shivering form. _Why am I naked?_

"Mmm, michiko…" it crawled on top of her, licking at her cheek,

"I'm…not…kaasan!" she weakly tried to push the violator off, but to no avail. She let out a shrill scream as soon as she felt a stabbing pain between her legs.

Hot tears poured down her cheeks as her body shook with fear and pain. The shadow, looking more like a monster than a man, snarled viciously, crimson red eyes boring into her skull, stealing the words from her mouth. The room disappeared, and the monster loomed over, shining white teeth ready to devour the small frame.

The mouth of the monster grew closer, the pain grew sharper; she could only scream.

Suddenly, something cool was being pressed against her forehead. She sat up quickly, only to find herself back in her bed, fully clothed, no monster. The light was on beside her bed as her aunt sat there, pressing a cool, damp cloth to her head.

"Another nightmare?"

Sakura bit her lip and shook her head in affirmation. "was I screaming?"

The woman nodded and Sakura looked down solemnly "He turned into a monster this time."

"The therapist said it's going to take some time with the medicine, but this is ridiculous." Her aunt sighed in pity.

The pink haired female closed her eyes, recalling the deepest sensation of fear running through her spine, "Obasan…can I enroll in Tae-kwon Do?"

Her aunt looked at her surprised, "Well that's sudden…may I ask why?"

"I've been thinking…in every dream I feel scared and helpless. And I am. Maybe if I toughen myself up, I can face him, and the dreams will go away."

The older woman smiled as she pet her niece's hair, "You're already a strong girl, Sakura-Chan." Her niece looked up, "But I think that sounds like a great idea."

Sakura smiled then reached over to hug her aunt, "Arigatou, Obasan."

"You're welcome" she hugged back then stood up, fixing the messy sheets to cover her better. "There." She smiled, "Do you want me to stay with you?"

"Iie, I think I'll be alright. Thank you though."

"Alright, if you need anything, don't hesitate to wake me or your uncle up."

"Hai, arigatou." Sakura nodded. "Goodnight!"

"Goodnight, Sakura-Chan." The woman smiled before closing the door to her room. Sakura leaned over and turned off the light, looking up at the starry sky shining through the window above the headboard of her bed.

_Maybe if I take tae-kwon do, Sasuke-kun will become impressed with me. _ She smiled,

_Stop kidding yourself, Sakura-Chan. _Her inner voice chided, _He's not interested in you, and you're not really interested in him either. You just pretend you are._

She rolled on her side, pulling the sheets closer _I know, but its something to do, something to keep me from sticking out of the crowd, being different…being alone._

Sakura closed her eyes, finally drifting off into a peaceful sleep, free from nightmares of the past. No, this time, she was running through a maze—running toward acceptance; running away from _herself._

* * *

Tousan: father  
Kaasan: Mother  
Obasan: Aunt

AN: Alright, so this chapter sucked, I'll admit. I didn't mean to make Itachi seem so OOC, but we all know that in the end he only cared about his brother's well-being, ne? Here he's doing the same thing, just in a less murderous, mind-fzck kind of way XD

And the results are in with an overwhelming majority of reviewers requesting this to be some sort of SasuNaru.

So next poll! Which one should be seme/uke? Review and let me know!


	4. Scrambler

**Chapter 4: **Scrambler

**-x-x-x-**

Slightly understanding why Sasuke had been acting so weird made Naruto feel better. But there was still something bugging him that he couldn't quite grasp. It was like a wet bar of soap; every time you think you've got it, it slips out of your hands once more. With shaky hands, perhaps he didn't _want _to hold it; perhaps it was easier to just let it go and move on.

He had gone back to Sasuke's house and stayed for a little while, the two of them flipping through channels, spending most of the time arguing over what should be watched rather than actually _watching _the television. After finally landing on some action movie that Naruto had already seen "a bazillion times", the dobe ended up falling asleep on the Uchiha's couch, much to Sasuke's dismay.

_What do I do? Should I wake him up or just let him sleep? _ He looked at the boy who sat there resting so peacefully; it would've been like slaughtering an innocent lamb for Sasuke to wake him. _I guess it wouldn't hurt. _Standing up quietly, Sasuke turned off the TV and tiptoed up to his room to fetch a blanket.

As he walked out of his room he heard someone whisper, "So he's sleeping over?"

The younger Uchiha turned to whisper back, "Well I don't want to wake him." He smirked, "aren't you supposed to be in bed anyways?"

Itachi looked up innocently, "I can't sleep. I think it was the curry."

"Bullshit." Sasuke snapped lowly, "You planned this all from the start, didn't you?"

"Well it worked, didn't it?" The elder Uchiha shrugged.

"Who are you, and what have you done with my brother?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

Itachi let out a small chuckle, "Just go. He's probably going to freeze and wake up."

"Maybe that'd be better" Sasuke mumbled before tiptoeing back down the stairs to the living room. He spread the blanket over the seemingly lifeless boy. _He's probably a heavy sleeper. He'll be in pain tomorrow if he stays in that position. _Lifting the boy, Sasuke's theory proved to be correct: Naruto didn't even flinch. He laid him down flat along the couch and positioned a pillow under his head. Satisfied with his work, the raven haired teen turned off the light and smiled ever so slightly, "Usuratonkaichi."

* * *

Upon waking up, Naruto noticed a few things were off. One, this was _not_ his bed. Two, this was _not_ his blanket. And Three, _where the hell am I?!_

Sitting up, he rubbed his eyes to get a better view of his world around. He was lying on a couch. _How did I get here?_ He was still in his clothes from the night before. _Oh right, I was at Sasuke's hou…wait a minute...WHAT?!_

Sasuke walked into the living room only to be faced with a headless-chicken-like Naruto. "Calm down, dobe. You fell asleep during the movie."

The blonde looked up at him, trying to process everything and glare at the same time. Wasn't working too well. Sasuke sat on the couch beside him and handed him a warm plate, only to result in Naruto staring at the food rather than eating it. "It's breakfast. You know, what you eat in the morning?"

"Shut up." Naruto growled, sitting up straight on the other side of the couch and biting into a piece of scrambled egg. "I just didn't know where I was, that's all."

"Hn. Whatever, just eat."

"Teme, that's what I'm doing." Naruto snapped.

Sasuke shook his head in irritation then walked back into the kitchen to get his own plate of food. Upon return, he found the blonde had already finished everything on the plate. "Geeze, did you even breathe?"

"Huh?" Naruto looked at his plate, "Hmph. I was just hungry."

Sasuke took his time eating his food while Naruto simply sat and watched him. "Y'know, you don't have to stay here if you don't want to." The Uchiha finally commented.

"Hn. Fine." Naruto stood up off the couch. "Thanks for the breakfast."

"Yup." The raven haired teen nodded uninterestedly as the blonde walked toward the door, grabbing his coat.

"Later."

Sasuke waved abruptly, not bothering to look up from his food.

"Teme." Naruto muttered before shutting the door behind him. But Sasuke would never know that once the dobe had reached the corner of the street, he stopped, looked back at the simple house, and smiled.

* * *

The phone rang in the Uchiha house, followed by Itachi's announcement that he got it. Sasuke listened to the man's conversation, as nothing else seemed interesting.

"Oh, sensei, hello!... Yes, yes, well I just wasn't expecting a call…Sounds interesting…tonight?...dinner sounds wonderful…mhm…alright…thank you for calling…take care."

Itachi set the portable phone in the charger, standing with his back to the door. "Why don't you hang out with Naruto-kun." He spoke, knowing his brother had been standing outside the door.

Sasuke shrugged, walking into his brother's room and sat on the edge of his bed. "You talk to your sensei a lot, Aniki." He stated, ignoring Itachi's suggestion.

"Hm, well, we know each other quite personally." Itachi responded, sitting down next to him, "His boyfriend is your English teacher, actually."

"Eh? Iruka-sensei is with another man?" Sasuke raised his eyebrows then slightly chuckled, "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. What's his name?"

"Hatake Kakashi. Really quite a fascinating man."

"So he's the one who's responsible for turning you into a philosophical moron." Sasuke scoffed, then whined as his brother whacked him upside the head. "Ow…"

"It'd do you some good to meet him, Otouto."

"No thanks. I'd rather spend all day listening to how Sakura's shopping adventures, or maybe stick my pinky finger in a pencil sharpener." Sasuke stuck his tongue out.

Itachi suddenly frowned, "what did you say Sakura's last name was, by the way?"

"I didn't…but it's Haruno. Why?"

The man looked down in thought, then shook his head, "Ah, it's nothing, I…I must have been thinking of someone else."

Sasuke shrugged, "whatever. So when are you meeting your lover?" This earned him another whack, "what?"

"Kakashi-sensei is my teacher, that is all." Itachi scowled. "And we're going to dinner so he can introduce me to someone he wants me to meet."

"Hn." Sasuke stood up then began to walk out of the room, "Well have fun meeting a new lover then."

Itachi rolled his eyes, "Why don't you hang out with yours today?"

Sasuke froze in the doorway and turned around, "He is not my lover. You're the one who swings that way, not me." He pointed at the older man then walked out of the room

Itachi smirked, _Almost exactly what I said too…Oh yes, he's quite in love._

* * *

Sasuke watched as a pebble he had just thrown skimmed the surface of the pond before sinking down into the water. He was still infuriated with his brother for insinuating that he, a proud Uchiha, was gay, and liked Naruto of all people. While one half of him told himself it was probably true, the other half denied the accusation vehemently. To top it all off, to know that Naruto was all alone just like him made him wonder if that meant they were friends now—it had been a long time since he had an actual friend other than his brother.

"Sasuke-kun!" a shrill voice called out to him, making the owner of said name wish he could disappear into the horizon along with the setting sun.

He turned to see Sakura running up to him, looking very sweaty and out of breath as she carried a heavy duffel bag over her shoulder.

"How funny we'd run into each other here!" she smiled sweetly, but the raven haired Uchiha simply bent down and picked up another pebble, throwing it fiercely across the water.

"Yes it is rather ironic." He sighed, knowing fate was being a big fat bully playing a mean, mean joke on him.

"So have you made any headway on your English project?"

He tossed another rock, not even looking at her. "Not really."

"Yeah, me either. Who knew it would be so hard? And I'm really stuck for ideas for Naruto…I was actually hoping you could help me. See, I thought he'd be easy and all, but I've been watching him lately, and I've just totally been blown away."

Sasuke was surprised. He expected her to say that there was nothing nice she could say about Naruto or how unfair it was that they couldn't symbolize him as a clown. He turned to her, seeing sincerity in her eyes for the first time, "I know…me too."

She laughed bitterly, sitting down on the grass and watched as the waves reflected the sky's various colors of oranges, pinks and red. To her, it looked as if the sky were symbolizing them; Naruto, the bright orange that took up most the sky; Sasuke, the sharp red streaks that glowed with fierceness and power; and Sakura, the soft pink that served as a transition between the two.

"I think I know why Iruka-sensei put us all in a group now…" she began, getting his attention, "all three of us lost our parents."

Sasuke sat down and looked over at the girl, but she didn't look back. Instead, she just stared ahead, as if searching in the sky for answers. "You lost your parents?" he asked, a little shocked; He never knew, and she definitely never said anything about it in class. "when?" he added, but still keeping his cool.

"My mom about half a year ago, my dad a few months ago." She shook her head, "well…my dad is still alive…"

"That's better than nothing."

She shook her head and looked down, "not really. You see, it's not him anymore. When my mom died, my dad died inside too. He lost it completely; convinced himself that I was my mother, made a few moves…" she trailed off, "…well, to say in the least, he's in prison now."

The raven haired teen was stunned. Now, two people had proven to him that things weren't always as they seem. He had always seen Sakura as a happy-go-lucky girl with not a care in the world. He didn't expect her to have had that darkness in her recent past, especially with the way she would wear a smile every day without fail.

They sat there in silence, with only the wind rustling through the leaves and the sound of passing cars on the main road a ways off to interrupt their serenity. Finally, Sakura stood up, taking her bag, "I should get going now. It's getting dark and my aunt might become worried."

Something must have completely taken over Sasuke, because before he knew it, he was asking her if she wanted him to walk her home. But once again, to his surprise, she declined.

"No, but thanks." She smiled, "I need to stop relying on others to protect me."

He shrugged, "Alright then. Good night."

She began to walk away then paused, "oh, and you should go visit your lover at work. I hear he has to work late tonight."

Sasuke's jaw almost dropped but he caught his composure, "Whatever. You're so annoying."

She chuckled as she walked away, "goodnight Sasuke-kuuun!"

Sasuke turned and walked away, only raising his hand to say goodbye and not bothering to turn around. _Well, guess it won't hurt…Itachi's out with his teacher and I'm kind of hungry anyways…oh damn it all to hell!_ He mentally threw his hands up frustration as he gave into the idea.

During the ten minutes it took to walk to the small ramen shop, the teen battled within himself, wanting half to turn around and just go home, while his feet carried him on closer to his new friend's work. But if anyone asked, he was just going to get something to eat and nothing more. The fact that his English partner and the person who had been driving him crazy the past few days worked at that same ramen stand was merely a coincidence. Just a coincidence!

Sasuke walked under the material flaps of the overhang and took a seat on one of the spinning stools. A couple sat together, cuddling as they ate the warm goodness a few seats down, and leaving the raven haired teen to feel like an innocent little fly that had just been squished. But that changed as soon as he heard a voice awaken him from his trance, "oi, teme! What're you doing here?"

"To get food. Why else, dobe?" Sasuke raised his eyebrows slightly at the blonde. "Nice hat."

"huh? Oh. Shut up." Naruto growled. It wasn't his fault the old man made his male employees wear chef's hats. "Anyways, what do you want to eat?"

Sasuke shrugged, "You pick."

"Heheh, alright! I'll make you some of the best grub you've ever tasted. Just you wait!" Naruto grinned before setting off to make the food. Sasuke occupied himself with playing with his cellphone.

Not that he received a lot of calls (though he would if he ever dared to give out his number), but it was still something to do to pass the time. He glanced at the time, _7:30…Itachi's probably at his dinner now…_ He didn't like how 'carefree' his brother had become, though he knew the older man was probably happier. But the fact that he was spending more time with other people than Sasuke irked the teen. _What am I? Jealous? Itachi lives his own life, I live mine. What he does is none of my business._

"Whatchya doin?" Sasuke looked up to see Naruto peering at him. He had been unconsciously staring at the blackened screen of his cell phone for the past five minutes.

"What's it your business?" the Uchiha snapped.

"Woah there, no need to get testy. I was just waiting for some ingredients to finish cooking so I thought I'd see if you wanted some company, but man. I should have known. It's you we're talking about."

Sasuke rubbed his forehead with his thumb and middle finger, "Just go cook. And don't overcook it or I'm not paying for it!"

"Sheesh, cranky are we?" Naruto pushed himself away from the counter, "I'll be right out with your food, master Sasuke." He shot back sarcastically before returning to the kitchen (and in that restaurant, it really wasn't a far walk.)

Sasuke rolled his eyes. He should have seen it coming; if he wanted a friend that was just like him, he'd have to deal with the repercussions of a snide, sarcastic personality that would rival his own.

But when the blonde came back with a goofy grin and handed him his bowl, Sasuke couldn't help but smile. The dobe had placed two cucumber slices in the bowl as eyes and a chain of slices of chicken in a curve for the smile. He had been given a smiling bowl of ramen, and Sasuke no longer felt like a squished fly, but a free lightning bug, floating around that night in a happy bliss.

"Heheh, there. I knew it'd put a smile on your face!" Naruto chuckled confidently, his hands resting behind his head, "Now chow down!"

Sasuke shook his head, laughing, "Baka. Only you." He wasn't quite sure what he meant by the last part, but they let it go, enjoying the silence of the quiet night. The couple had left just a few minutes before, leaving only Naruto and himself in the front of the ramen stand.

After a few bites, Naruto asked, "Good?"

Sasuke nodded in appreciation.

Suddenly The blonde burst into a broad grin, "I've got it! I know what I'm going to symbolize you as!"

Sasuke raised one eyebrow while pushing the other down, "A bowl of ramen?"

"Iie, iie! I can't tell you! You have to wait. It's a surprise!" The dobe laughed gleefully.

Sasuke smirked, "Oh I can't wait." He retorted, his words just dripping with sarcasm.

"Heey! You'll like it! I think it suits you perfectly." He leaned back, looking at the raven haired teen like an artist would his painting, "Yes yes, it's perfect for you."

"Whatever, dobe." Sasuke smirked, "I'm still tempted to symbolize you as a clown."

"Hey! Iruka-sensei said you'd credit if you did! So hah!"

"I know. That's why I'm at a loss." Sasuke reveled in his pure burnage.

"Hmm, too bad for you, huh? Maybe you'll actually have to see my 'deeper' side after all." Naruto grinned, leaning on the counter as he looked down at his friend.

"Maybe you'll have to show it to me." Sasuke said with a smirk, setting his chopsticks down and folding his hands in front of his face. They stared for a minute, blue specs reflecting in black eyes, and black enrapturing sparkling blue ones. Neither would admit, but the speed of both beating hearts increased in a moment that they'd deny ever happened.

"Hey…Sasuke?" Naruto finally broke the silence.

"Hm?" The black haired teen took up his chopsticks and began to eat again.

"Will you wait for me to get off my shift tonight? The old man gave me a pair of tickets to the fair, and I thought maybe we could hang out. My shift ends in just half an hour."

Sasuke shrugged, "I guess so."

Naruto smiled, "Great!"

* * *

The two arrived at the Konoha fair somewhat nervously. Most people went together with their significant others, not their rivals. But Naruto decided to push the thought aside and make the most out of the free tickets.

"Let's go on that one!" The blonde pointed at a large ride with many arms and branches going every which way.

Sasuke peered at the sign, "You mean the scrambler?"

"Yeah yeah!" the fox-like boy grinned wickedly, "C'mon, doesn't it look fun?" He started off running, dragging the other teen along by the wrist.

"N-naruto!" Sasuke stammered, blushing madly from the awkward looks they were receiving. _Why am I so nervous to be seen with him like this? It's not like I care what they think…Alright. No more. No one else matters but me and Naruto. _

"What? Afraid of a little ride, _Scaredy-cat?_" The blonde stuck out his tongue and teased.

Sasuke yanked his hand away, "Hn. Hardly." Naruto didn't hear his comment though, and instead, ran off to get in the line. Sasuke sighed, walking calmly to catch up with the blonde.

They watched as people rode by, screams and laughter filling the air as they went around sharp corners and gut-wrenching drops in their seats. Sasuke could barely remember the last time he had been to a fair, but he knew that when he did, he had been in the presence of his parents and a much younger Itachi.

He looked at Naruto, who watched the people spin by intently. Maybe he didn't have his whole family, but here he was with someone who understood the pain of living alone, perhaps more so than he did himself.

In that instant, he decided to wrap his arm around the dobe's waist, earning a jump from the blonde, "what are you…?"

Sasuke smirked and leaned over to whisper, "I saw one of my fangirls walk by. Just go with it.."

"What?! I'm not going to have everyone think I'm gay for your sake! And besides, what if other people from school see us?"

"Why do you care so much what other people think?" He leaned his chin on the blonde's shoulder, purring in his ear, "Besides, I think you are and you're just afraid."

Naruto gulped and looked down, "Still…I'm not…I…" He was saved by the gate opening, allowing them to take a seat in the big metal machine. The dobe looked at his friend and bit his lip, watching how Sasuke pretended like everything was fine.

Maybe Sasuke was right. Maybe he needed to stop caring what other people thought. But he had made it his goal to earn the respect of his peers through becoming stronger and smarter…it had been his dream. But if he were to go along, and reveal that he truly wasn't the straightest arrow, it could mean losing all that hard-earned respect.

But there was also the nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach saying,_ you want this. You want to feel his arm around you. You want him to hold you like he really means it. _And as the ride tossed them around, Naruto's stomach wasn't the only thing feeling scrambled.

* * *

AN: thank you for all your reviews! n.n They make me one happy authoress! Now most people demanded that our favorite little Teme should be seme, and I shall do what the readers desire :D With my own little twists, of course!

I apologize that I haven't updated in a while; I'm currently working on two other fics (an angsty sasu/saku one-sided love story and a completely smut filled uchihacest oneshot that's taking longer than it should XD) I plan to put those on hold, however, so I can dedicate my time to finishing this one up, so expect more frequent updates!


	5. Comfort Zone

**Chapter 5: **Comfort Zone

-x-x-x-

When Naruto got off the spinning machine, he felt sick, and in more ways than one. What was Sasuke thinking, pulling something like that in front of everyone? The Uchiha was pounding a nail into a rotten board, and Naruto was ready to crumble.

"Oi, dobe, you okay?" Sasuke asked once they walked out of exit gate.

"I…shit, where's the bathroom?" The blonde asked and Sasuke looked around, then pointed to a row of port-a-potties. Despite the look of disgust on his face, Naruto ran off into one, slamming the door shut behind him.

Sasuke sighed. _And he was the one who wanted to go on that ride_. Maintaining a good distance from the stinky pods, Sasuke leaned against a lamp post, waiting for the dobe. He looked across the way to watch as a young teenage boy tried to knock down a pyramid of bottles in order to win a stuffed animal for his girlfriend. The boy was sheepish as he failed, but the girl clung to his arm happily anyways.

Thinking it would be a while before Naruto was done, Sasuke walked up to the stand to take his try.

"Want to try your luck, young man?" The man held out a small plastic ball

"Hn. That's why I'm here, right?" Sasuke replied, handing over a couple of dollars and taking the ball from him. He stepped back, and threw the thing with all his strength, successfully knocking down all the bottles on the first try.

"Woah, what an arm!" The man clamored as people began to gather around.

At that point, Naruto walked out of the makeshift bathroom, looking for his raven haired friend. Then he found him, but not in the likeliest of places. He walked toward the crowd, excusing his way past people to tap on Sasuke's arm. "What are you doing?"

"Winning you a stuffed animal, what does it look like?" Sasuke replied then threw the ball again, knocking the bottles over for the third time.

"WE HAVE A WINNER!" the man shouted as the people clapped, "Now pick your prize!"

"Which one do you want?" Sasuke asked.

Naruto blushed and turned away, 'Whatever. You pick."

The winner scanned the rows of stuffed animals then pointed, "That one on the top left."

"This one?" The man confirmed.

"Yes." Sasuke replied and took his stuffed prize from the man. He turned to Naruto, "Here."

The blonde took the stuffed animal, which looked like a cute little fox, and blushed deeper, "Thanks."

There were a few aww's mixed with a few eww's, but Sasuke glared at the ones who dared try to ruin the moment. They walked away with Naruto still staring down at the stuffed animal, a goofy smile finally plastered on his face.

"No one's ever done anything like that for me before." Naruto finally looked up at his friend.

"Then call it a first." Sasuke smirked.

"Hmm…I should name him." Naruto held up the cute stuffed animal in front of him. "I think I'll call him…Kyuubi!"

Sasuke smiled at his friend's enthusiasm. At first he was worried from the way Naruto had reacted to him putting his arm around the blonde, but it seemed that either the dobe had decided to enjoy it, or was completely ignorant of Sasuke's feelings; Sasuke had a feeling it was a little of both.

After what seemed like a billion different rides, Sasuke walked next to a very giddy blonde along the main path. Somehow, seeing Naruto so happy made him content. Perhaps it was because he was the one making the blonde feel that way.

"Oooh! Cotton candy! I haven't had that in ages!" Naruto exclaimed, pointing to the fluffy candy stand.

Sasuke winced at the idea of feeding the blonde pure sugar, but then again, he had the feeling that no one had ever taken the blonde to a fair before, or at least not in a long time. "Let's get some."

"Hai!" The blonde subconsciously squeezed the stuffed animal closer to himself as he grinned.

They decided to get just one fluffy treat as Sasuke wasn't fond of the intense sweet taste. "Let's sit over there." Naruto pointed to an area with tables under a broad canopy.

"No…I've got a better idea." Sasuke smirked, taking the blonde's hand and pulling him in another direction. Naruto blushed, but followed along obediently, curious as to where the other male was taking him.

They walked up to a short line and Naruto's mouth fell open in a silent "o" as he understood. "The Ferris wheel! Of course! We haven't gone on here yet." They climbed onto the spinning machine and Naruto dangled his feet happily, eating his cotton candy with glee.

When they had reached the top, Sasuke raised his arm and pointed, "Look up."

"Woah…" Naruto gasped as he clung to the other's arm. The blonde looked up to see the stars shimmering like tiny diamonds scattered all over black velvet. "Wow…"

They rode along, the blonde even more captivated of how much of Konoha he could see. Finally, he spoke, "Sasuke?"

"Hm?" the raven haired teen looked over at the blushing blonde.

"Why are you doing all this for me? Winning kyuubi for me, paying for this," the blonde held up the cotton candy.

Sasuke shrugged, "I like you."

Naruto looked up, "What do you mean?'

The Uchiha sighed, "Dobe. You're so dense."

"Hey!" Naruto crossed his arms, "I'm not dense!"

"Yes you are."

"No I'm not!"

"Yes, you are."

"No, I'm not!"

Sasuke sighed, "Just forget it."

"Forget what?"

He wanted to slap his forehead. Hard, "Nothing. Just…enjoy the ride."

The blonde shrugged and went back to finishing the cotton candy, which Saskue would refuse every time Naruto tried to offer him some.

"Do you hate all sweets?"

"Pretty much." Sasuke shrugged.

"Man, you really are weird."

Suddenly Sasuke's cell began to ring, "Hello?" he answered.

_"Otouto, where are you? Do you know how late it is?"_

"I'm at the fair with Naruto." He smirked.

Silence. _"…well you could have had the courtesy to call."_

"I didn't want to interrupt your dinner, or any other after-dinner activities." Sasuke said in a way that Itachi knew he was smirking.

_"You could have sent me a text. I've been worried about you."_

"Well worry no more. I'll be home in about an hour. I'll call you if that changes."

_"You better..mpfh!"_ Sasuke heard what sounded like shifting around_ "I've got to go, I'll see you when you get home."_

"Uh huh. Call me if you need me to stay out later." Was Sasuke's simple reply before closing the cell phone and hanging up.

"Was that your brother?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah." Sasuke replied.

"You two seem pretty close." The blonde smiled, "I wish I had a brother."

Sasuke's phone rang again. "Yes?" He asked.

_"Why don't you stay out a couple more hours?"_ Itachi asked, seeming a little out of breath.

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Alright." He replied then hung up once again.

Naruto started laughing, "We can hang out at my place. It's a little messy, but we could watch a movie or something."

The younger Uchiha shrugged, "Okay."

After they had hit just about every ride, the two decided to go back to Naruto's. They walked in silence, but not in an awkward one, but more of a contented bliss; it was a "moment", and words would only complicate it. For now, they were happy just walking together.

That night they watched a movie with Sasuke putting up less of a fight as to which one. They still sat opposite of each other on the couch, but the air was tense with the desire to cuddle up.

When the movie had finished, Sasuke called Itachi, who declared in a tactful manner that it was now safe to come home. Naruto watched him walk down the street until he was out of sight before going back inside and shutting the door. And he had no idea, that after that night, their worlds would never be the same.

* * *

Sunday was a slow day for the small ramen shop and Naruto caught himself whining to his fellow employee of how boring it was.

"What would you do if you weren't working?" the black haired teen asked.

"I dunno, probably hanging out with sa—friends." Naruto quickly correct himself.

"Ah, like your gay friend there?" The teen asked with a seemingly innocent smile.

Naruto blushed, "I don't know…and besides! You're one to talk!" he threw a wet rag, soaked with cleaning detergent and crumbs at the other employee.

The teen caught it before it hit him. "I'm not gay." He stated simply, leaning on the counter next to Naruto.

"Oh right, Sai. And rainbows are straight." Naruto raised an eyebrow, "For someone who makes so many jokes and comments about penises, one would have to wonder."

Sai shrugged, "I like girls." He turned to look towards the entrance, spotting a pink haired female walking in. "Like that ugly bitch."

Naruto shook his head while walking to the front, "You're so weird." Once in the open, he smiled, "Hey Sakura-Chan!"

The girl smiled sweetly, "So. Did Sasuke-kun stop by last night?"

Naruto blushed _How does EVERYONE know about that? _, "Erm, yeah. He did. Why?"

"Oh no reason. I saw him on my way home and told him you had to work last night. Didn't think he'd actually take my advice." She grinned.

"You told him to come here?" he asked.

"Just told him it might be a good idea. I figured you were lonely." She sat down on one of the stools.

"Heh, thanks." He rubbed his head sheepishly, "so what can I get for you?"

"Actually I just came here to see if you wanted to hang out later." She asked.

"Like as a date?" he grinned widely.

Sakura rolled her eyes, "Dream on. Besides, don't you already have a lover?"

"HE'S NOT MY LOVER!" Naruto nearly screamed as sai walked up next to him.

"He's in denial." Sai stated simply.

"Oh, hello Sai! How have you been?" she asked, ignoring the fuming blonde.

"Hm, alright I suppose. I guess you could say I'm experiencing boredom." The black haired teen scratched his head in thought.

_Sai can be really weird sometimes… _She thought to herself then turned to the blonde, "Anyways, Naruto. Can you hang out later or not?"

He shrugged, "I get off at five tonight. Is that okay?"

"Sounds great. I'll come by later." She hopped off the stool and turned to walk outside, "See you guys!"

Sai smiled innocently again, "Yes, I'd 'do her', as they say."

Naruto rolled his eyes and pushed away from the counter, "I think you'll have to learn a little bit more about social interaction before she'd ever let you 'do' anything!" the blonde shook his head, disappearing into the back kitchen as he did.

"hmm…" the teen took his insult seriously, "well I think I'd have a better chance than you, seeing as I'm not gay."

"I AM NOT GAY!" Naruto shouted, causing a few birds around the shop to take flight.

* * *

What seemed like endless boring hours finally passed as the blonde hung his apron in the back room, then walked out of the little ramen shop into the crisp night air. Sakura was waiting patiently for him as they had planned, though everything after was theirs to make up as they went along.

"So it's unusual for you to want to spend time with me. What's wrong?" he asked as they walked along the sidewalk.

Sakura laughed, "Nothing's wrong, I just figured it had been a long time since we just relaxed like this."

"Hmm…" Naruto pondered, still not quite believing the girl. He rested his hands behind his head as they walked, "If you're trying to get to Sasuke through me, don't expect anything. He's as confusing as ever." Naruto winced as Sakura punched him in the gut. "Ooww, what was that for? And when did you learn to punch like that?" he asked, gripping his stomach in pain.

"Baka. I told you, I just want to spend time with you. I don't care about Sasuke-kun. Well I mean I do, but not like that." She smirked at his pained expression, "And I just started taking tae-kwon do classes…though it seems I've had a natural ability for combat all along."

"I'll say." He rubbed his stomach, giving it a look of pity, "But are you serious about Sasuke? I thought you were all head over heels for him."

She shook her head, "Nah, I only did it 'cause it seemed like the normal thing to do. I mean yeah, I liked him at first, but then it faded away after I realized he doesn't care for me or any other girl for that fact." She turned and smiled, "Of course, now it's pretty obvious why."

"Hm?" he glanced over at her, "Why?"

"Well duh, he's into guys. And more specifically, you, Naruto." She shook her head, "Honestly, you're so dense."

He narrowed his eyes as he looked forward, "Heh…yeah, so I've been told."

"But what do you feel about it?"

The blonde shrugged then looked down, remembering the giddy, school-girl-crush feeling he had after saying goodbye to the raven haired teen and closing the door. He remembered how he chose to cling to the little red fox Sasuke had won for him the night before. He remembered the feeling of his heart racing when they walked home together, rode the Ferris wheel together, had dinner at Sasuke's house together, ate popcorn and watched the movie together, and the very first time they danced together; it was all a blur of emotions that he had rather just enjoy than question.

"I mean, I guess I feel happy." He answered, his feet unconsciously carrying him over to a swing set located in the park they had ended up in. They sat down on the swings, and Naruto looked up at the sky, looking for answers. "When I'm with him…even when he teases me…I feel happy. I feel like the first time someone really loves me. While it's good and all, it's also scary, because I'm afraid of losing it."

Sakura watched the blonde as he pushed his feet against the ground and began to swing into the air. The metal frame of the swingset creaked as she began to swing too, and the sound was soon joined by the sweet melody of their laughter. With a mighty push, Naruto forced himself off of the swing in mid-air, just barely landing on his feet.

"Jump!" he beckoned the girl.

"I'm scared!" she laughed, still swinging back and forth.

"Just let go!" he instructed and she followed with a squeal of laughter. She landed next to him, laughing as she nearly lost her balance again.

"I haven't done that in ages." She said between what now sounded like girlish giggles.

"Yeah…me neither." He grinned, dusting himself off as they walked out of the sandy area over to a broad, hilly field. Suddenly, he grabbed her wrist and started running, "C'mon, there's something else we haven't done in a while!"

She followed him up to the top of one of the hills, only to watch him lie down on his side and roll down the grassy incline like a log. When he got to the bottom he stared up at the sky, waiting for the stars to stop moving, "My god, I forgot how much fun that was."

Sakura laughed then sat down in the grass, rolling down the hill like he had and laughing while she did. The two of them simply laid in the grass, looking up at the sky in contented wonder.

"Hey, Naruto?"

"Hm?"

"Do you like Sasuke?"

"Well yeah—"

"As more than a friend?"

he was silent for a minute then answered, "…maybe."

"Then why don't you just tell him?"

Naruto let out a sigh and closed his eyes, "What would everyone think though?"

She sat up, her hands resting behind her for support, and blurted rather abruptly, "who cares what everyone thinks, Naruto? Are you going to let people who don't even matter come in the way of what makes you truly happy?"

She watched him as he closed his eyes, then let out a response so quiet that she could barely hear, "I've dedicated my whole life in trying to make people around me respect me. If they find out I'm dating a guy, it'll ruin everything I've worked for—"

"If they don't respect you because you're with the person you love, then their respect isn't worth anything! Don't you see? And the people who matter the most aren't going to care if you're with a guy, they'll just be happy for you."

"Who are the people that matter most?" he asked, laughing, though he was seriously considering the question.

"Me? Your friends? Shikamaru, Chouji, Kiba…though I think Hinata will be a little disappointed, but still happy for you. What about Iruka-sensei? You two are pretty close, and from what I heard he's dating a male professor at the University." she leaned her head to the side, "Those are the people who matter, and I know every one of them will love you just the same no matter what."

Naruto quirked a smile at her, "Heh, yeah I guess you're right."

"And I mean, you want to be known as someone great, right?" She asked, "You want people to respect you?"

"Yeah?" he asked, playing with a few shards of grass.

"Then don't let stupid people keep you from happiness. If you do this, You'll be a beacon for others just like you, afraid to step out. You'll be respected for your courage and people won't bother to mess with you because they'll see that you don't care about them." She justified, holding her knees close to her chest..

Naruto smiled, "Alright, alright! I'll do it. But you'll have to help me, 'cause I ain't so go with all this stuff."

"Just leave it to me." she grinned.

* * *

RA: I hate this chapter. So much filler. So pointless, so fluffy, so…bleegh. But I refuse to leave you without hope! So therefore, I instated Sakura's dating service. Perhaps we'll pair it up with Ino's flower shop! Haha, plans! PLANS!

Anywho, thanks you reading reviewers! You make my days happy and bright. I heart you! And for those of you lurkers, I'd really love to hear what you have to say. A writer only gets better by criticism. Critique me! Flame me! Give me your best shot! I want to hear what you've got to say!


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